This Blood
by Kat271
Summary: Post S3---The Bristow, the Derevko's, and all the rest find out everything...
1. Default Chapter

"How have you been?" Jack typed into the Instant Messinging service. He used their standard protocol, logging on at 3 in the afternoon LA time.  
  
"Well. You're missed. Will you be visiting soon?" Irina replied quickly. She was logged on under her usual handle.  
  
"Things are uncertain at present." Jack typed, but paused before entering the text. "How are things going for you?" He finished, and hit enter. He regretted how he'd put it immediately.  
  
"Things?" Irina replied, just as he'd expected. He'd chosen the wrong word, and now he was going to pay for it. "You've been gone too long if that's how you're referring to our situation." Irina typed, he could hear her harsh tone echoing in his head.  
  
"Forgive me. It is hard when we're not talking in person." Jack said, hoping she would understand.  
  
She left him hoping for a long moment before responding.  
  
"Everything here is going well. It's hard." Irina replied, her tone obviously softening. "How is Sydney?"  
  
"I'm afraid that is where the uncertainty lies." Jack typed.  
  
"What happened?" Irina asked quickly.  
  
"I'll know more later. I must go now. Talk to you soon. Love." Jack typed hastily, before signing off.  
  
They both knew that he really didn't have to go. Irina sighed, as did Jack. He always regretted ending a conversation with her. Or maybe it was that he could see her face to face and talk to her, that he regretted. Either way he left the conversation feeling unfulfilled and worried.  
  
He closed the lid to his laptop unceremoniously, and started his car. He drove quickly, without thinking. His mind was still on where he'd left the conversation with Irina. He went over it again in his mind. Should he have told her? Should he have let her know what he'd done? It pained him to keep this from her, especially when so much was at stake; Especially when she was so involved. Sydney was her daughter too, and what she'd just learned was something with which both Jack and Irina would have to handle the repercussions of.  
  
As he drove he kept seeing her eyes. Tear filled, and angry her stare bore into him like nothing he'd ever felt before. It was as if the waves of guilt and grief growing inside of him all came crashing down at once, focused in the anguish of her eyes. He'd seen this before; her reaction to his actions. And when he'd played it out in his head this was one of the logical conclusions. He hated that it had ended up this way. He hated that it had started in the first place.  
  
But the time for anger and hatred had just begun.  
  
Truth be told, he needed Irina's counsel. She was, in fact, the only person who could give him the valuable advice he so desperately needed. In truth, she was the only one who could "fix" things, as they stood now. Or at least, that is what Jack prayed.  
  
A thought crossed his mind. Maybe there was someone else who could help him. An avenue to Sydney's heart, and ear. She had refused to see him, talk to him, listen to his messages. She'd been a stone wall ever since he'd dragged her kicking and screaming out of the Wittenberg bank. She'd cried. She'd demanded explanations and apologies. But he could give none. He wanted to, desperately. But he could not. His shock was still too great. He had not yet prepared himself for this. He wasn't ready.  
  
Changing gears, Jack kicked himself for his own self pity. Yes, he was saddened, angry, guilty, but it was all nothing compared to what she was going through. He pictured her sitting in her living room, alone, crying. Wondering what it all meant, and how he could have kept it all from her. But then he remembered, she wouldn't be alone. Michael Vaughn would be there with her. And the thought crossed his mind again. Maybe he could help. Maybe Vaughn was the key to helping Sydney understand, to helping Sydney's fresh wounds heal, and build a new bridge with Jack.  
  
Yes, Jack nodded to no one but himself. He would enlist the help of Michael Vaughn. But first, he had to make Vaughn understand, and that, wasn't going to be easy. 


	2. 2

"You need to know, I only agreed to meet you because Sydney doesn't know." Vaughn said curtly.  
  
Jack nodded. "I assumed as much. How is she?" He asked uncomfortably, shifting his weight to show it. The sun was bright atop the CIA operations center. He'd chose this spot for its convenient location and its privacy.  
  
"How the hell do you think she is Jack? She wanted answers. She says she doesn't need them, she thinks she's figured it out. But to tell you the truth," Vaughn paused, trying to choose his words carefully, "Let me put it this way. I hope, and you sure as hell better hope, that the story she's put together in her head isn't true." Vaughn said, trying desperately to contain his anger. "She's terrible." He sighed after a moment. "It's like she's lost tow years all over again, and I don't know how to help her. I'm lost with this." Vaughn sighed again, taking off his sunglasses and trying to read Jack's eyes.  
  
"Vaughn," Jack false-started, taking a breath. "Sydney will need time." He said nodding his head as if he were trying to convince himself of what he was saying. "And she will need answers." Jack hesitated, unsure of himself, as he's been so rarely in his career. "I never wanted her to find this." He sighed again, shaking his head this time. "She should have never known..."  
  
"Well she does." Vaughn half shouted, interrupting. "She knows, well hell, she doesn't know very much, but..." Vaughn trailed off, his emotions getting the better of him.  
  
"I know. And I can't tell you how sorry I am." Jack sighed. "Truthfully, I don't know what to do." Jack said, averting his eyes in shame.  
  
"None of us do Jack. But you've got to tell her. Everything, she's gotta know. It's killing her. And she's putting on this front, she's a good liar Jack, but she's broken up. She feels like she's lost you, she's lost those two years again. And in the place of all that she's been dumped on by one hell of a shit-load of lies. Not to mention betrayal." Vaughn threw his hands up in the air for emphasis.  
  
"I need to see her." Jack said, tired of this tirade against him. "There are things she needs to know." He said quietly.  
  
"She won't see you." Vaughn said firmly.  
  
"That's why I came to you." Jack said softly.  
  
"And what, you expect me to just take you to her. What do you want from me Jack, because right now this isn't looking good for you. At this point Sydney believes that everyone in her life has betrayed her. I'm still making up for the biggest mistake of my life, don't think for even a second that I will do anything, anything at all to hurt her." Vaughn's voice rose passionately as he spoke. His own anger and resentment rising, his own betrayal echoing in his mind.  
  
"Sydney needs you right now. You are absolutely right about that." Jack sighed, praying that what he was about to say would go over well. "I know she won't talk to me, but eventually things will need to be explained in person. There are some things I must tell her." Jack paused watching Vaughn carefully. "I have a few documents, ones that weren't with those she found in Wittenberg."  
  
"More of her file?" Vaughn spat questioningly.  
  
"Yes more. Additions I originally withheld because of their sensitive nature. I think Sydney should see them." Jack said trusting them toward Vaughn.  
  
Vaughn paused for a moment, weighing his options. After a beat he took the folder and opened it.  
  
"This isn't a good place." Jack said looking around.  
  
"Oh it's fine." Vaughn assured him as he scanned the pages. "This is review, Sydney has already seen this." He said looking back up at Jack.  
  
"No it's not. There were things that were omitted in the summary she found, specific items in her medical file she needs to see, to understand." Jack said arching an eyebrow.  
  
"Alright. I'll see that she gets them." Vaughn nodded, closing the folder and tucking it under his arm.  
  
"Please, I must talk with her. I don't want to force it, but if I must..." Jack trailed off, not wanting to even imagine that showdown. "Please talk to her. There are things here that will raise questions. Questions that I will answer, gladly. I'm just sorry I couldn't do it sooner." Jack said quietly, as Vaughn's gaze scowered over him.  
  
Vaughn turned abruptly and walked away. Jack watched him retreat for a moment, knowing that this was his only chance. 


	3. 3

"All of my instincts are telling me to dodge and cover." Jack admitted solemnly. He took a long drink of his beer, before looking at Dixon who was sitting across from him. The bar was dark but he could see Dixon deep and thought.  
  
"You mean all of your Agent instincts. What do your fatherly instincts tell you?" Dixon said thoughtfully.  
  
Jack sighed. He was so unsure of his place as a father he was afraid to say anything. He knew his place in the world as an intelligence officer. As a father things were far less clear. "I just want her to listen to what I have to say. I just want her to be happy again." He sighed again. "That's all I've ever wanted."  
  
"I know that Jack. And deep down Sydney knows that too. But this is different. From where she stands she can't see your reasoning. All she sees are the lies. She feels betrayed." Dixon sighed as well, watching Jack's expression. "It doesn't mean she doesn't want to fix things." Dixon was taken aback that Jack was asking for his advice. Well Jack hadn't overtly asked, but Dixon understood.  
  
"You're right. And it's not like I haven't gone over this again, and again in my mind. But," He paused steadying himself. "What I did was wrong. It was wrong for the right reasons, but it was wrong. And part of me is afraid that all she will see is that wrong." ...................................................  
  
From the CIA Files of Jack D. Bristow.  
  
Sydney Ann Bristow—April 17, 1975

ID CLASS: USS-CI-2300844  
  
Recruited: 2001  
Supervised: Agent Michael Vaughn-  
  
Case Files: Confidential  
  
Pronounced dead: May 28, 2003 Los Angeles, California  
Coroner-Jerry Gardner  
Medical Examiner-Dina Myers  
  
Found Alive: June 2, 2004 Rome  
Alias- Julia Thorne  
Confirmed- JDB  
  
Returned to the CIA- March 27, 2005 Hong Kong  
Brought in by: Agent Michael Vaughn  
  
Signed,  
  
Jack D. Bristow, JDB

ID-CLASS: USS-CI-2300682


	4. 4

She'd only agreed to meet him, because she knew if she didn't she'd go insane. There were too many questions, too many things that didn't and would never make sense. She hated it but she needed him. Or she needed his answers.  
  
It was all crashing down on her again. Not knowing who she was or what she was living for. She'd spent the last year trying to piece together her life, trying to be a living, breathing, functioning person. It had been harder than anything she could have ever imagined, more lonely too. And now she was standing in a place where everything she'd pieced together, everything she'd been forced to accept, to believe; it was all crashing down on her, and she had no way to stop it. Her father could have stopped it, but at present it seemed that he hadn't raised a finger to help her.  
  
"Sydney you must know how sorry I am." He started bleakly.  
  
"Cut the crap Dad. I have questions, you are going to answer them. Maybe at some point after I've figured this all out, we can..." She wasn't sure what she was saying, or how to finish it; so she didn't.  
  
Jack nodded, a cold calculating nod. Or maybe just a sad one, Sydney could hardly care to know the difference.  
  
She sat across from him in the only place she could think of where she had the upper hand. She wanted him to be intimidated, she wanted him to squirm. And she knew exactly how to accomplish that. The room was barely lit, there were no windows. She'd set it up to be an interrogation, her own private inquisition. He sat in a chair across from her, he shifted in his seat every few minutes. She liked that.  
  
"When did you know I had a sister?" She'd decided to start with the past and work her way up. She didn't really know any other way to go about it.  
  
"Your mother was pregnant when she left us." Jack said, his words biting with indignation.  
  
Sydney swallowed, unsure of what to say. She was angry with her father, but this was something different.  
  
"How did you know?" Sydney said softly.  
  
"She told me. Looking back on it, she probably didn't intend to, but she did just a few months before the accident." Jack said, averting his eyes.  
  
"So you've known all this time..." Sydney breathed. She regretted saying it after she did.  
  
"Sydney, you wont like this but I'm going to say it anyway. It wasn't any of your business to know this." Jack's words stung, but she knew they were partially true.  
  
"It is now. So let me make sure I have this straight. You knew mom was pregnant. She left, had the baby. And what, that's the end of it?" Sydney spat knowing that this topic was hurting him as much as it was her.  
  
"If you're implying that I knew the child wasn't mine, than you're wrong. As for my actions and motivations at the time, there is no way you could possibly understand." Jack said, obviously hurt.  
  
Sydney took a moment, she pretended to be looking over the file in front of her.  
  
"I only found out that Nadia was Sloane's daughter recently. At the same time I found out about your mother's affair." Jack sighed, softening a little.  
  
"So you knew that I had a sister out there somewhere, and you did nothing?" Sydney said, the hurt in her voice clear.  
  
"The file in front of you indicates otherwise, as I recall." Jack said, closing his eyes.  
  
"Operation FireTrap." Sydney read from the file. "What was your objective?" Sydney asked as professionally as possible.  
  
"To find your mother, and bring her in." Jack said, matter-of-factly.  
  
"And my sister." Sydney said scornfully.  
  
"No one knew about the child. That was my business." Jack said, arching an eyebrow, waiting for her to argue.  
  
"You were the lead, and there are dates here. But there are names that were concealed. Who?" She questioned quickly.  
  
"That's unimportant." Jack said without faltering.  
  
"I'll be the judge of that. Who did the team consist of?" She repeated.  
  
"Sloane, Brill, and William Vaughn." Jack said, after a moment. He watched her reaction carefully.  
  
Sydney didn't react. Inside she was reacting, but she would never let him know. "Tell me everything." She said calmly.  
  
Jack sighed. "We followed a few leads on your mother. It took a few months but finally we caught up with her. It turned out that after she'd been returned to the KGB they took her into custody." Jack paused.  
  
"Why?" Sydney interrupted.  
  
"I don't know." Jack shook his head. "We found a way to infiltrate the prison, but there were unforeseen problems." Jack sighed.  
  
"Like what?" Sydney prompted?  
  
Jack sighed a heavy sigh, yet again. "William's contact within the prison was suspicious of Sloane. William felt the same way. He came to me, and I didn't believe him, but when we finally infiltrated the prison Sloane disappeared, we lost contact completely. Brill went to find him, and William and I went for Irina. She was in the hospital wing, recovering from the birth of her daughter." Jack said slowly gauging Sydney's reaction.  
  
"It was a mess of a situation. William found the baby and tried to convince me that we should get her out, hide her from the KGB. I was much more focused on getting Irina into custody. When Brill found us, we were arguing about what to do. At that point we had no more time left, we were forced to take the baby and get out. Somehow your mother got hold of a gun. She shot Vaughn's father in the back as we turned to leave." Jack was shaking his head.  
  
"Once we were clear Brill explained the situation to me. Truthfully, I was too blinded by my failure to capture your mother, and the loss of William Vaughn, to understand what he was telling me. He convinced me that the only way to keep the child safe was to hide her away where no one could find her. Not the KGB, not Sloane, not anyone." Jack sighed, closing his eyes.  
  
"So you sent her to Argentina." Sydney said softly, taken aback by her father's story.  
  
Jack paused for a moment before looking Sydney in the eye. He took a deep breath before speaking. "No, I took her there myself." 


	5. 5

"I'm sorry to interrupt." Weiss said opening the door slightly. "Dixon need us for a briefing now." He closed the door quickly before Sydney could respond.

"Damn it," Sydney sighed.

"We can continue this later, if that's what you still want." Jack said softly as he stood.

"This was never what I wanted. This is what you wanted. This is about what you did." Sydney said picking up her papers and walking away.

As she walked into the light of the rotunda she took a deep breath. She saw Vaughn across the way and gave him a weak-half smile. Dixon waved them into the conference room, and she entered begrudgingly.

"First of all I just want to say that I am glad to have this team back together." He looked to Sydney and Vaughn. "I hope everyone is well rested. Right now we are shifting focus. The Covenant has been severely crippled by the loss of Lauren Reed and Sloane as contacts. We however have not escaped the damage caused by these two. Sloane and Nadia Santos have gone underground, and we are going to find them." Dixon looked to Jack before continuing "One of the better results of Sydney's mission to Palermo was the capture of Katya Derevko, who is believed to be working for the Covenant. She is in our custody but has yet to be questioned. Sydney she says she will only talk to you." Dixon slowly looked over to Sydney.

Before Sydney could respond Jack interrupted. "I don't think I have to say it, but I do not believe this is a good idea."

"Afraid she tell me something I'm not supposed to hear." Sydney quipped.

"Sydney, the woman is obviously deranged. She stabbed Vaughn, almost shot you, what more do you need to know." Jack said his voice flaring.

"Katya knows more about Sloane and Nadia than we do right now. That makes her valuable to us, Maybe not to you." Sydney said standing. She looked to Dixon "I'll do it."

"Fine." Dixon said inclining his head. "In the mean time the rest of you need to be working with analysis. I want Nadia and Sloane found, yesterday." With that the group disbanded. Sydney and Vaughn were the last to move, and Vaughn pulled Sydney aside after the room was empty.

"Do you really think this is a good idea?" He said softly.

"Vaughn I interrogated my own mother, Katya's nothing." Sydney said with a hint to pain.

"I know that, but Syd…" Vaughn started.

"Why are you questioning me on this?" Sydney accused with a pained look.

"Sydney I'm not questioning you." Vaughn retorted. He took a moment and sighed. "Look the woman tried to kill us both, okay. I just don't know that I could do it." He said touching her arm.

Sydney sighed and then looked up at him. "I'll be fine." She said forcefully.

"Good, coffee first?" He said with a smile.

Sydney thought about it for a moment before nodding with a smile.


End file.
